Trial by Media

This edited collection brings together scholars from criminology, law, media and communication studies, politics and linguistics to consider the different meanings and dimensions of trial by media. Trial by media remains an under-researched and under-conceptualised phenomenon. This book sheds new light on the complex and evolving interfaces between courts, media and justice. It features original analysis of high-profile cases of media trials including Nicola Bulley (UK), Lindy Chamberlain (Australia), Chris Dawson (Australia), Sanda Dia (Belgium), Dragan Vasiljković (Australia) and Roman Zadorov (Israel). Acknowledging the risks and benefits of heightened media scrutiny of the criminal justice system, the book challenges the notion that trial by media is invariably incompatible with the requirements of natural justice. It also foregrounds ways in which media trials routinely occur in the absence of a legal trial, arguing that there is a need to broaden and rethink the concept of trial by media. The book reflects on the enduring significance of legacy media for public perceptions of the law and the disruptive impact associated with digital media. Furthermore, the collection considers the implications of trial by media for the integrity of court proceedings and the protection of human rights. It offers an assessment of the potential demise of court reporting and its traditional bridging function between courts and public opinion.

Lieve Gies is Associate Professor in the Department of Media and Communication at the University of Leicester, UK. She specialises in media representations of the law and the legal system. Her research is highly interdisciplinary, straddling socio-legal studies, criminology, media and cultural studies. She published Transmedia Crime Stories: The Trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito in the Globalised Media Sphere (Palgrave, 2016).